Photo of the Week: Land Belongs to the Future, Let’s Climate Proof It

06-16-2014
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NWF Staff

June 17th is the 2014 World Day to Combat Desertification! This day has been observed since 1995 to promote public awareness of international efforts to mitigate desertification and the effects of drought. This year’s theme is ecosystem-based adaptation—sustainable land management increases both community and ecosystem resilience. On the island of Hawai’i, the indigenous and critically endangered palila, a Hawaiian honeycreeper, feeds almost exclusively on immature seeds of the māmane flowering plant. Prolonged drought has made these seeds scarce and is the primary driver for massive annual palila population declines—the bird now numbers fewer than 1,000 individuals. Photographer Drew Smith, of Virginia, took this image using a Canon EOS 7D and a 500mm lens.